Pope washes feet of "Gay" Irish Priests (letter to Irish Faithful).

Honour thy Father and Mother (Pastoral Care), Light Switch for a Christian Home. Designer unknown. Must have been a naive Christian designer. Sex is a sin - bad thoughts are taboo. The sexual connotation is in the eye of the beholder.Pope Benedict XVI's letter to the Catholic faithful; makes a plea to all closeted gay Catholic Priests to come clean (face up to justice), to declare their status as an act of repentance, healing and renewal.?!

Catholic Church repents of Concessive Concealment - is it enough?

The churches concealment - code of silence ensured the abuse continued. The practical effect of this code of silence has been to allow the priestly abusers to become serial rapists, as they have been shipped off from one assignment to another. Daily Beast, Blogs and stories, James Carroll

It is ironic that the gays are refused communion in the Catholic Church (homosexual activity is sinful), whilst the child abusing, paedophiles, again in the spotlight Catholic Priests, suppose to be celibate, have received and administered communion for years. They did so whilst abusing little boys and girls. The Catholic Church continue to conceal their sexual acts and deny their priest's sexual orientation. They are not permitted to be sexually active, I suppose they therefore can’t be gay. It has been convenient for them all these years, to be celibate in the first place, to conceal their status as closeted homosexuals and lesbians (nuns). No they are not homosexuals, nor should they be treated as paedophiles (criminals). They are untouchable, Gods chosen people, supported by Gods love within Gods sanctuary. What is their sexual orientation, Pope Benedict, are they not homosexuals to?. Do they not desire sex with their own kind, is it not true that their sexual fantasies goes much further, it also includes the seduction of little boys (a very serious crime)?.

They should come clean, accept the fact that they to are homosexuals, come out of the closet, declare themselves gay, be listed as child offenders, and support the gays rights to Holy Communion and their rightful place in society – as an act to redeem themselves. It is time that the Catholic Church admits that their priests are sexual beings, that they are sexually active and that the policy on celibacy should be scrapped – maybe then they wont abuse little boys and girls, suppose to be protected by god’s people in god’s house. This is an abomination Pope Benedict. Instead these Priests, yes they are criminals (paedophiles), are protected by the Catholic Church, and permitted full rights within the Catholic Church, a position god loving homosexuals are denied. Yes the Catholic Church has provided them sanctuary, whilst their gay god loving Christian brothers are denied communion and support. By the way, gays are not paedophiles Pope Benedict. We love sex with our own kind, but we are not paedophiles. One wonders whether the Irish Paedophile Priests had confessed to these acts, before receiving communion, and administered the body and blood of Christ to their congregations. If so, then the Pope and his clergy should please explain why they were permitted to administer and continue to receive communion, whilst god loving and fearing gays are constantly refused to partake.

Act of defiance; protest over the Catholic church policy of refusing communion to homosexuals. The Star, Monday, 11 March 2010.

Seduced and abandoned; Ceramic Competitions!

Spanner in the works, Page one of three. Entry forms for Mixed Media - Ceramics plus, The Nassauische Sparkasse 2010 Talent Award for Ceramics.

Seduced

Entering Ceramic Competitions is every aspiring ceramist’s dream to gain regional, national and international recognition. The idea is to seek an acclaimed status (celebrated, applauded and much appraised) amongst the elite of one’s ceramic peers. Being accepted and winning an award, boosts one’s creative endeavours and looks great on the CV. However being rejected, especially when you were very confident with your entry, can be devastating!

Spanner in the works, Page two of three. Entry forms for Mixed Media - Ceramics plus, The Nassauische Sparkasse 2010 Talent Award for Ceramics.

Case in point

This post entry is in direct response to my work being rejected for the Mixed media – Ceramic Plus, The Nassausiche Sparkasse 2010 Talent Award for Ceramics. Enclosed are the drawings, images and supporting text submitted for the Ceramic Competition (as requested in the entry forms) –an installation of 16 tattooed rats with actual piercings titled, Spanner in the Works. To my knowledge this is the first time, in an International Ceramic Competition, that your ideas, drawings, models and prototypes had to be submitted for adjudication and not photographic documentation of the finished final piece. I assume most ceramists would have submitted images of their final pieces and not drawings etc as stated on the entry forms.

Emotional Distress

I was very confident with my drawing skills and design layout knowledge, including my highly refined conceptual ability, that I would be one of the 150 out of 350 entries to this prestigious awards exhibition. Especially as the 2010 competition focuses on Art or expressive works rather than studio ceramics and or Ceramic Craft. The inclusion of piercing linked to tattoos, associated with the historically significant event, Operational Spanner UK, seemed the obvious creative direction for me to pursue, and perfectly meets the competition's mixed media criteria. On rejection a carefully constructed letter was compiled and sent to the abandoned and rejected individuals, with these comforting and encouraging words; to consider future participation … “but please: as you surely know, - in another context, with another group of jury members or another theme the decision could have been easily another one involving your wonderful project, too.”

Spanner in the works, Page three of three. Entry forms for Mixed Media - Ceramics plus, The Nassauische Sparkasse 2010 Talent Award for Ceramics.

Abandonment

Most competitions have a policy that the judges decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into / or entertained at the rejection of the work. No feedback is ever provided. This leaves one with the feeling of self-doubt and rejection, a Dostoyevsky type angst (Crime and Punishment syndrome) associated with a lack of creativity and innovation underpinning one’s work.

Judging

In my capacity as a judge, I have myself rejected work for regional and national competitions, and therefore should be well prepared for the worst outcome. However there are those times when one is maybe over confident and forget that there are so many factors that contribute to work being accepted and certain work to be rejected. To try and begin to analyse the reasons for the work’s rejection, is a futile exercise, and in itself destructive. There are always more questions than answers. Doubt is not all bad and if channelled correctly could bring out the best in one’s creativity.

Restitution?

One should take refuge in one’s self belief, and pursue one’s creative passion with ever increasing determination. One needs to get over it, not to take it so personally, and to get on with it. So there you have it. Respect for the judges decision is always good governance, obstinate behaviour could have serious consequences, that draws far too much attention to oneself for the wrong reasons, which most certainly will not aid one’s future career development or successful entry in future competitions.